Knot No. 1

photo credit: Nora Renick-Rinehart

The design of these flags diagram the steps necessary to tie a weaver’s knot – a knot employed to join two threads, to fix a broken warp, or tie a new warp onto a loom. In this sense, these flags can be read as practical instructions, communicated in bold colors and graphic patterns. While illustrating a literal knot, the flags beg consideration of a figurative knot, and the symbolic power of flags to unify people, to rally them to a common cause, and to serve as a patriotic reminder of the national ties that bind.

The diagrams also explore the difference between conceptual understanding and physical dexterity -- the chasm between the representation of a process and the physical execution of that process. This mirrors the chasm between the lofty ideals embodied in flags, and the frank difficulty of realizing those ideals in practice.

Seen from one sequence, the flags illustrate how to tie a knot. Seen from the opposite direction, they show how a knot can be undone. Acknowledging both possibility and peril, these flags take as their symbol the very process that may leave us either united or untied.

90% of weaving happens before thread ever touches the loom. Indeed, the accumulation of warp over weft is only one of many actions, including drafting/design, winding, measuring, looping, counting, dyeing, knotting, setting tension, and others. These actions formed the inspiration and starting point for this exhibition.

Tie Up, Draw Down explores weaving as a source for experimentation across media, genres, concept, and scale. Of the fifteen contemporary artists included in this exhibition, many hybridize weaving technologies, weave “the wrong way,” or adapt and innovate weaving processes to encompass new media. Others do not weave at all, but find a rich avenue of inquiry within aspects or stages of weaving’s complex field.

The CCCD Curatorial Fellowship is made possible by the John & Robyn Horn Foundation. CCCD is supported in part by a grant from the N.C. Arts Council, a division of the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. Additional support for Benchspace programming provided by Sara and Bill Morgan.